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What is the description of the prayer of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, with clarification of its pillars, Sunnah, and disliked actions?

2 min readAlso available in العربية

The actions of prayer are divided into: pillars (arkan), duties (wajibat), and sunnah acts.

As for the pillars: the intention, the opening takbir (takbirat al-ihram), standing in the obligatory prayer, reciting Al-Fatiha in every rak'ah, bowing (ruku'), rising from bowing, prostrating (sujud), sitting between the two prostrations, tranquility in all actions, sitting for the final tashahhud, the final tashahhud, sending blessings upon the Prophet (peace be upon him) after the final tashahhud, the salutation (taslim), and maintaining the proper order.

As for the duties: the takbirs of transition (moving between positions), saying: "Sami' Allahu liman hamidah" (Allah hears those who praise Him), saying: "Rabbana wa lakal-hamd" (Our Lord, and to You belongs all praise), glorifying Allah in bowing, glorifying Allah in prostrating, saying: "Rabbighfir li" (My Lord, forgive me) between the two prostrations, and the first tashahhud and sitting for it.

The difference between a pillar and a duty is that if a worshipper omits a pillar, he must perform it and then prostrate for forgetfulness (sujud as-sahw). However, if he omits a duty and has moved past its place, he does not perform it, but compensates for it with sujud as-sahw.

As for the sunnah acts: these are all actions other than the pillars and duties, such as: raising the hands in certain places, placing the right hand over the left, the opening supplication (du'a al-istiftah) and seeking refuge (isti'adha), reciting something from the Qur'an after Al-Fatiha, saying "Ameen," and adding more than one glorification in bowing and prostrating.

The disliked acts (makruhat) in prayer: letting one's garment hang down (sadl), enveloping oneself completely in a garment (ishtimal as-samma'), covering the mouth or nose (talathum), tying up hair or tucking up garments, imitating disbelievers, imitating animals, minor movement without need, sticking the abdomen to the thighs during prostration, and praying in a distracting garment or place.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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